Horizon Robotics released a video shot yesterday in Beijing featuring the self-driving capability of a Volkswagen ID.4 car fitted with the Horizon SuperDrive system. In the video, Horizon Robotics founder and CEO Dr Yu Kai takes Volkswagen China CEO Ralf Brandstätter for a drive through rain-soaked Beijing during the evening rush hour.
Although the video was obviously planned, as there are some exterior shots of the car going by, what could not be planned is the weather. When the video was shot, Beijing was experiencing heavy precipitation that lasted for 30 hours. The area to the northwest, where the headquarters of Horizon Robotics is located, reported some of the heaviest rainfall in the city, reaching 30 mm.
It should be stressed that the Horizon SuperDrive system is not currently fitted to production VW ID.4 (see specs) cars in China. The video accompanying the announcement appears to show the whole journey, albeit some parts are sped up. What is very notable is that Dr Yu, who was in the driver’s seat, didn’t have to intervene at any point during the route. Given the unpredictability of Chinese urban environments, this in itself is an achievement, but added to this was the inclement weather, which is something that could not be prepared for.
Over the route, the car encountered several occasions where the system could well have had problems. At one point, the car encountered a congested intersection and inched its way along to the center, even though at the time, the left turn it wanted to make was blocked by a car immediately in front. Once that car moved, the VW completed the left turn.
In many Chinese cities normal road conditions are influenced by major construction projects such as either the building of subway lines or new underground or sometimes overhead roads. These often involve creating temporary roads around the construction site, and the road will usually be littered with both the old and new road markings, making the path far from clear. Such a situation can present a significant challenge to self-driving cars. Once again, the SuperDrive system managed to successfully make a left turn despite the very wide construction area, which was blocking a lot of the normal route.
Other situations the car experienced included bus lanes, where the car successfully realized that the lane on the right was a bus lane and navigated itself into the correct lane. Also, it encountered situations where cars tried to pull out but didn’t actually pull out, and the VW, rather than jamming on the brakes, successfully dodged past those cars.
The route also involved one roundabout. These are pretty uncommon in China, and road users generally do not know how to use them. In the video, it can be seen that the car does break to an extent when one car in front cuts into the roundabout, but it successfully navigates its way around the roundabout and takes the appropriate exit.
Overall, the video shows that the action of the SuperDrive system is very smooth and like that of a human driver. With many such systems, there can be situations where the car will break suddenly or simply refuse to move, but this does not appear to happen during the route.
The Horizon SuperDrive is a full-stack autonomous driving system launched earlier this year by the company. It is a smart driving solution that covers everything from ADAS to all-scenario NOA (navigation on autopilot). Horizon Robotics claims the system focuses on safety, comfort, and convenience for users. It says the system can handle complex road conditions in a similar way to experienced drivers, providing obstacle avoidance, gentle breaking, dynamic speed control, and smooth execution of unprotected left turns.
It is not clear what the hardware requirements of the system are. However, from external pictures of the VW ID.4 undergoing the test yesterday, we can see that the car appears to be fitted with a lidar unit above the windshield. It should be noted that the Volkswagen ID.4 does not, as standard, have such a unit.
In 2022, Volkswagen, through its software company Cariad, forged a partnership with Horizon Robotics to improve ADAS and autonomous driving systems for the Chinese market.
Sources: Horizon Robotics, Fast Technology
